I just read AS may be adding SEA to Tampa, New Orleans, and Detroit!

[General Lee]

You are right, you don't know how many locals fly there. Alaska does! They see how many tickets they sell and then put on delta. Here is a hint, it's enough to do it themselves with a 737.

Alaska does not need luck, it has data.

Yeah, apparently they also know they can't fill some 737s intra Alaska anymore, now putting a bunch of Dashes up there. Sad. And they sure cut and ran away from some SEA to Mexico flights (nonstop CUN?). Btw, great route picking out of SLC...


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[General Lee]

Great news!

Alaska Airlines to Offer Local Beer Tasting on Q400 Flights in Alaska
Fairbanks' Silver Gulch Brewing & Bottling Co. will be available to sample beginning March 3

PR Newswire Alaska Airlines 2 hours ago
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Feb. 12, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Travelers on Alaska Airlines flights between Anchorage and Fairbanks and Anchorage and Kodiak will soon enjoy an extra infusion of local flavor in the form of Silver Gulch Brewing & Bottling Co.'s Old 55 Pale Ale.


"Silver Gulch is a successful local business based in the Fairbanks area, and we're excited to offer their beer on our Q400 flights within Alaska," said Marilyn Romano, Alaska Airlines' regional vice president ? Alaska. "This continues our tradition of serving products made in the communities we proudly serve."

Passengers will have the opportunity to sample the moderately hopped, American-style pale ale free of charge beginning March 3, when Alaska Airlines introduces the Bombardier Q400 to the state of Alaska. The flights will be operated for Alaska Airlines by its sister carrier, Horizon Air. These flights will feature complimentary soft drinks, Starbucks coffee, Northwest wine and microbrews (for passengers 21 and older), and A la Cart planeside baggage service.

"Travelers are going to enjoy our popular pale ale," said Glenn Brady, president of Silver Gulch Brewing and Bottling Co. "It's a really nice beer that has a broad appeal. It's going to enlighten a lot of people on what a craft beer can be, in terms of 'Well I never thought I'd enjoy that, but I did.' "

The brewery, which has locations in Anchorage and north of Fairbanks, will bottle the beer in stainless steel "Kleen Kanteens," which are lighter, stronger and more environmentally friendly than traditional glass bottles.

"The pale ale we serve to customers onboard our Q400 flights will be about as fresh as you can get," said Lisa Luchau, Alaska Airlines' director of onboard food and beverage. "It'll be bottled and packed every day."

Samples are about 6.5 ounces and will be offered to customers on flights operating after 11 a.m.

Travelers can pick up their very own Kleen Kanteens (or traditional glass growlers) filled with their favorite Silver Gulch beers at the brewery's restaurant in the C Concourse at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport or at the brewery and restaurant in Fox, Alaska.




Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[wmuflyguy]

I honesty don't know if many locals fly there. It's more of a connection hub from smaller cities in the NE and the Upper Midwest. Have you read about the cities woes? You won't have any connections there. MSP and ORD are different, more profitable Fortune 100 companies based at those cities. Good luck on your own in DTW.


Yes the city of Detroit is in serious financial trouble, but DTW serves far more than just the city of Detroit! DTW attracts pax as far east as London, Ontario to Grand Rapids, Saginaw to NW Ohio.

Not to mention Chicago is in pretty perilous financial straits also. A cities financial situation doesn't necessarily equate to lack of passengers.

 

[ImbracableCrunk]

Wait! Are you guys saying Detroit pax might not be from Detroit? Next thing you guys'll tell me is Denver pax aren't farmhands from the surrounding fields.

 

[General Lee]

Wait! Are you guys saying Detroit pax might not be from Detroit? Next thing you guys'll tell me is Denver pax aren't farmhands from the surrounding fields.

Uhhhhhh, DTW is a HUB, meaning lots of flights come in and connect pax to other flights to other cities. Not everyone is from DTW itself, except MAYBE some on your future flights. Maybe. You guys cut the Cancun nonstop from SEA a couple years ago, could have reinstated it maybe, but instead are going nonstop to.....Detroit. Good luck.


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[General Lee]

Not to mention Chicago is in pretty perilous financial straits also. A cities financial situation doesn't necessarily equate to lack of passengers.

No, especially if it is a connecting hub. If it isn't for your airline, you will be hoping locals pick your airline, or you can consistently fill it with pax from your existing hub in SEA. If the city isn't doing well, that doesn't help on the DTW side.

Delta seems to be picking cities out West that will provide connections in SEA, to try to grow the hub. New domestic cities, and 3 new INTL connections starting soon (Seoul, Hong Kong, London Heathrow). I'm still trying to figure out how your airline chooses new cities. Sometimes it looks like someone might be throwing darts at a map.



Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[Old School 737]

5 -10 years from now Alaska will either 1 .. Merger .. Or 2 .. Start flying 787's international .. We can't keep growing any more like we have been .. There are only so many place we can fly out of Pdx and Sea .. And so-cal ...So.. Well see

 

[Sioux115]

Apparently very well considering their financial performance over the last 5 years.

 

[Sioux115]

I vote for 787's! Brad'll do it!! But you got to get past the bean counters and the single fleet idea.

 

[Green Banana]

I'm still trying to figure out how your airline chooses new cities. Sometimes it looks like someone might be throwing darts at a map.



Bye Bye---General Lee

How did you do in reading comprehension?
Yes, to you, I'm sure it is confusing. To Alaska it's buisness and data. Do you think they dropped CUN because it was too profitable? Do you think they added Detroit without looking at how many tickets they sold and put on deltas airplanes? Alaska is a money machine with a 12% profit margin. I'm sure many things look random and confusing to you. It's because you don't have the information to make an educated decision. You are in the press box giving an opinion, not on the field calling the plays.

 

[Mamma]

You guys cut the Cancun nonstop from SEA a couple years ago, could have reinstated it maybe, but instead are going nonstop to.....Detroit. Good luck.


Bye Bye---General Lee

Cancun was a low yield market and at the time there were better places to put the jets. If Cancun looks promising again, then you will see us go there. I'm surprised you are not in management somewhere with all your industry knowledge of yields and revenue generation. Really surprised.

 

[CesnaCaptn]

No, especially if it is a connecting hub. If it isn't for your airline, you will be hoping locals pick your airline, or you can consistently fill it with pax from your existing hub in SEA. If the city isn't doing well, that doesn't help on the DTW side.

Delta seems to be picking cities out West that will provide connections in SEA, to try to grow the hub. New domestic cities, and 3 new INTL connections starting soon (Seoul, Hong Kong, London Heathrow). I'm still trying to figure out how your airline chooses new cities. Sometimes it looks like someone might be throwing darts at a map.



Bye Bye---General Lee

Alaska is code sharing beyond DTW, meaning the entire PNW can take our flight to anywhere in the upper midwest and beyond. Alaska is chasing way more than the 300ish average pax that O&D between only Seattle and only Detroit.

I'm surprised we didn't start DTW when we started the code share with Delta. We can dump all of our MVP Golds onto all of those cute RJ's running from the Delta hub out to the Styx.

 

[General Lee]

Apparently very well considering their financial performance over the last 5 years.

When you didn't go to these new cities (SLC-SJC???), and you didn't have a challenge in SEA....


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[General Lee]

Cancun was a low yield market and at the time there were better places to put the jets. If Cancun looks promising again, then you will see us go there. I'm surprised you are not in management somewhere with all your industry knowledge of yields and revenue generation. Really surprised.

No, I understand that. But, DL figured something else out, you have to reward your best customers with places that they want to take their families on vacation too. If you want business customer loyalty, a reward for that loyalty pays off in the end. Kinda like adding JNU in the Summer. You'd think CUN would fit that mold from SEA in the Winter. Oh well, maybe DL will add that next Winter....


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[BarbrPole2theOM]

No, I understand that. But, DL figured something else out, you have to reward your best customers with places that they want to take their families on vacation too. If you want business customer loyalty, a reward for that loyalty pays off in the end. Kinda like adding JNU in the Summer. You'd think CUN would fit that mold from SEA in the Winter. Oh well, maybe DL will add that next Winter....


Bye Bye---General Lee

That's correct, although I don't think only Delta has figured that out. Alaska has lots of places for them to go with direct service. Cancun was always full, but the revenue wasn't there. In guessing people didn't want to spend any more to go there over the rest of our destinations in mexico that we have a lot more flights into and therefore able to keep the total cost of the operation lower. Cancun may make more sense then others for Delta for the exact same reason.